The “Sea Commercial Port of Illichivsk” has received a loan from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) towards the cost of the Illichivsk Commercial Sea Port Infrastructure Development Project. The project consists of a reconstruction of three existing berths, procurement of cargo handling equipment and carrying out dredging works to increase the depth of water up to 16m. The objective of the project is to increase operational reliability and efficiency of the port’s services and resolve critical transport bottleneck in the area by supporting development of major container terminal in the Black Sea.

The Port of Illichivsk now invites firms and joint ventures to tender for the following contract to be funded from part of the proceeds of the loan for the a contract for the Procurement of Cargo Handling Equipment – two (2) gantry cranes.

Brief Description of Equipment:
Two (2) fully revolving gantry cranes designed for cargo handling (vessels, rail-cars, automobile vehicles) and assembly works at open storage area in the macroclimatic regions with moderate climate.

Cargo lifting capacity, not less than:
– using hooks in the boom range up to 36m – 40 tonnes
– using grab in the boom range up to 36m – 34 tonnes
Boom reach – 36m
The type of the crane rail is P65 GOST 8161-75.                                      
Track width 10.5m

Maximal pressure of the wheel on the crane rail is not more than 270 kN

The main electric power supply of the crane shall be provided with the flexible cable through the cable-drum with motor drive of 10 000 V voltages and 50 Hz frequency.

Cranes are assigned for the execution of works with general and bulk cargoes on the open sites in the limit of V wind region inclusive by GOST 1451-77, where on the height of 10m over the ground surface the dynamic pressure of the wind in non-working condition composes 700 Pa and the speed of the wind is 33m/sec. The work with crane is allowed at the dynamic pressure of the wind 250 Pa and the speed of the wind 20m/sec on the height of 10m over the ground surface in the intervals of the air temperature from plus 40?C up to minus 40?C.

Climatic modification of V class of location 1 shall be executed by GOST 15150-69. Seismic modification, class of explosion and fire hazardous zone shall comply with the requirements of the actual normative documents – not less than 7th class.

The cranes should be capable of simultaneous and independent operations of slewing, main hoist, and boom hoist motions under full load and speed.

The crane control and operation system shall be designed for the maritime environment assuring precise and safe crane operations, load indicating and recording, engine operation system, trouble-shooter system, function monitor etc.

Hooks, grabs, magnets, traverses and other appliances can be used as load-handling devices.
Technical requirements set requirements to the construction, technical characteristics, projecting, manufacturing, quality, acceptance and supply of the crane.

Tendering for the contract is opened to companies and joint ventures from any country. Suppliers providing goods and/or services, covered by a prohibition decision of the United Nations Security Council taken under Chapter VII of the United Nations are not eligible. Suppliers providing goods and/or services or who envisage to deal with vendors from countries with which commercial relations are prohibited by the Ukrainian Authorities are not eligible.

To be qualified for the award of the contract, tenderers must satisfy the following minimum criteria:
· the tenderer shall be the manufacturer of the Goods, and in case if the tenderer does not manufacture the Goods, such tenderer shall be duly authorized by the goods’ manufacturer or producer to supply the goods in the Purchaser’s country (including certificates of conformity ISO, UkrSEPRO);
· the tenderer, including manufacturers of the goods and suppliers of the services, as appropriate, shall have the financial, technical and production capability and capacity necessary to perform the Contract;
· the tenderer has satisfactorily supplied to other purchasers not less than 2 units of cranes similar to those required under this invitation for tenders for the last 5 years, as well as the services (list of Contracts for supplying, assembling and testing for the last 5 years, copies of the taking-over certificates to the listed contracts, information concerning the purchasers on the listed contracts);
· the tenderer or its agent will be able to carry out the supplier’s assembling, putting into operation, maintenance, repair and spare parts stocking obligations prescribed in the tender documents (copies of the appropriate licenses for Supplier or its agent, or contractor to be engaged for assembling and putting into operation; copy of the agency agreement or the contract agreement for assembling and putting into operation).

Tender documents may be obtained from the address below upon payment of a non-refundable fee of Euro 100 or equivalent in any other convertible currency (this amount includes VAT but does not include the payment for bank transfer services – this charge shall be paid by the tenderer).

CONTACTS:
State Enterprise “Sea Commercial Port of Illichivsk”
6, Truda str., Illichivsk,
Odessa region, Ukraine, 68001
Phone: +38 (048) 760 8600, 760 8605
Fax: +38 (048) 760 0606
e-mail: port@ilport.com.ua
General Director

The increased volumes follow a number of track and equipment improvements made over the past three years, including a 39-metre extension of the South Rail Terminal to accommodate 22-wagon trains, a major line refurbishment of the same terminal in 2008/9, and two state-of-the-art Rail-Mounted Gantry Cranes in 2010.

The port currently operates two open-access, common-user rail terminals and in 2012 will construct an all-new third rail terminal. Co-financed by the European Union from the Trans-European network budget, the new terminal will double rail capacity on the port. It will also be another first for the Port of Felixstowe; the first terminal in the UK designed and built to accommodate longer, 30-wagon, trains.

David Gledhill, Chief Executive Officer of Hutchison Ports (UK) Limited (HPUK), which owns the Port of Felixstowe, commented: “It is easy to celebrate reaching a specific number of containers being put through our rail terminals, but when we consider the implications of these moves port-wide, our achievement is even more impressive. Approximately one in every three of all containers that came through the port last week arrived or departed via rail, which is not only a huge environmental success, but also reflects  the continually improving service provided by the port. The use of intermodal rail freight offers one of the best ways to make substantial carbon savings, and there are more rail services, to more inland destinations, more often, from Felixstowe than any other UK port.

“These volumes highlight customer confidence in the rail facilities at Felixstowe, consolidating our position as the port-of-choice for UK importers, and justifying beyond question the investments we have been making to improve the rail services available to all our customers.”

Last month, the Port of Felixstowe was named Business of the Year at the Rail Freight Group’s annual awards for the second time in three years, and also picked up the coveted Customer Care Award.

Rail freight services at Felixstowe are offered by Freightliner, GB Railfreight and DB Schenker.  Daily connections are available to and from Glasgow, Manchester, Liverpool, Leeds, Cleveland, Birmingham, Doncaster, Tilbury, Selby, Hams Hall, Wakefield, Ditton (Widnes), Birch Coppice, Scunthorpe and Bristol.

With this agreement the strong links of both companies will be reinforced by creating a strategic alliance that will generate wealth and opportunities for the Port of Bilbao. SLP owes 20% of social capital of Noatum Container Terminal Bilbao (formerly Abra Terminales Marítimas), while the remaining 80% belongs to Noatum.

Luisa Guibert, President of SLP, said that “today more than ever it’s necessary to take efforts towards creating new paths of growth, and with that aim we have bet for this alliance, that will allow us to become stronger. We will take advantage of our main skills, as well as our solid experience and strong knowledge of the sector”.

Antonio Campoy, President of Marmedsa Noatum Maritime, said that “this agreement with SLP will allow us to generate more competitive dynamics in the Port of Bilbao, and at the same time generate new synergies between both companies. We will work together with the Port Authority, which has become a key support for us, in order to generate new business opportunities”.

Douglas Schultz, Noatum´s CEO, added that “this agreement reflects the company´s will to create strategic alliances, with the goal of creating new business structures better adapted to the current economic situation and more qualified to face future challenges”.

Algeposa Group is the main shareholder of SLP, with presence in the most representative ports of the Iberian Peninsula and with train terminals distributed in different strategic places (Irún-Hendaya, Port Bou, Perpignan, Madrid, Sagunto, Barcelona, etc.)

The striking results were announced today by the Port of Rotterdam Authority and the National Heritage Board. The Port Authority’s Project Organisation Maasvlakte 2 is responsible for the expansion of the port in the form of Maasvlakte 2. The archaeological investigation that is being conducted is part of a series of studies being carried out in connection with the construction of Maasvlakte 2. Deltares, Bureau Oudheidkundig Onderzoek Rotterdam (Archaeological Research Office) and the Archeologisch Dienstencentrum (Archaeological Service Centre) are among the parties involved in these studies. The National Heritage Board is guiding the research and is the supervisory authority.

Habitation 9000 years ago
Some 9000 years ago, the area where the North Sea and the port of Rotterdam can now be found was a river landscape created by the Rhine and the Maas. Due to the rich flora and fauna, this was an attractive place for hunters and gatherers. We know from the Middle Stone Age period that the hunter-gatherers lived in small family groups of about 10 people. They wandered around the area, showing a particular preference for river dunes, which provided safety when the rivers flooded. The river dune on which they lived at the time now lies 20m below the New Amsterdam Water Level. As the Yangtzehaven is to form the access waterway to Maasvlakte 2, this harbour needs to be deepened. Part of the river dune will disappear as a result. That is why this unique excavation is now being conducted below sea level. This investigation is geared towards gathering information about the early habitation of the area.

Finds
The bone remains found up to now are small fragments (smaller than 1 cm) of burnt and unburnt animal bone. The unburnt bone points to the presence of animals at and in the vicinity of this spot. The burnt bone is burnt in such a way that it must be the result of human action. This burnt bone and the charcoal also found are indications of food preparation such as the grilling of meat. The fragments of flint and the minuscule flakes of flint prove that flint was worked on site to make all kinds of implements, such as arrowheads, knives and scrapers to clean hides.

Unique in the world
‘Nowhere in the world has such research been carried out at such an exceptional depth under water’, said Henk Weerts, senior researcher in Physical Geology and Palaeogeography at the National Heritage Board. Before a start was made on the excavation, the exact locations were determined on the basis of geological research and test drillings. The areas which are now being excavated measure about 9 by 16m. From pontoons, grabs systematically scrape 2mx 3m slices of ground in 20cm layers from the sea bed. On land, the ground is sieved and the residue is sifted through for traces of humans, animals, plants and other materials. It will take a few months to process the sieved remains. It is possible that even more finds will be made in the coming period.

Little known about Mesolithic
Up to now, very few other traces of life in the Early and Middle Mesolithic (9000-7000 BC) have been found in the western Netherlands. Other parts of the country are known to have been inhabited during this period, but the finds there are limited mainly to scattered remains of flint. In the dry sandy soils in the northern, eastern and southern Netherlands, no organic remains, such as bone, have been preserved in the soil. In the favourable, damp conditions at and around the river dunes, which were later buried by sediment, they have. ‘At last, we have evidence to support the suspicions and indications which scientists have had for a long time regarding the area inhabited by humans in the Middle Stone Age in the extreme west of the Netherlands,’ said Weerts.